CARVING OUT A LIVING ON THE LAND Lessons in Resourcefulness and Craft from an Unusual Christmas Tree Farm

Emmet Van Driesche narrates his own informative guide for successfully running a small family farm. In a clear and pleasant voice, he describes his years managing a Christmas tree farm in rural Massachusetts. The author describes every nuance of working with a forest, and the audiobook provides detailed suggestions for farmers in similar situations. This type of guidebook, however, doesn't lend itself particularly well to the audio format. The detailed and often obscure advice would be more easily accessed, referenced, or skimmed in print. The slow pace and lack of emotional modulation also diminish the audiobook's appeal. Although Van Driesche encourages listeners to bring creativity to any unconventional small business, his story is missing an intriguing personal narrative to broaden its appeal beyond farmers. J.T. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2019]